Tim Draper leads seed investment in Ryder
Ryder, a crypto technology company, has raised USD 3.2 million in seed funding led by Tim Draper, founder of Draper Associates and an early investor in Facebook, Tesla, and SpaceX. The round also saw participation from Anatoly Yakovenko, founder of Solana; Joe McCann of Asymmetric; and venture capital firms Borderless, Semantic, Smape, and VeryEarly.
The funding will accelerate production and marketing for Ryder One, the company’s flagship crypto hardware wallet, which can reportedly be set up securely in under a minute. Ryder One features a tap-based recovery system that eliminates reliance on seed phrases, aiming to make crypto ownership simple and accessible.
Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Ryder aims to make digital asset management intuitive for everyday users while demonstrating that significant crypto innovation can emerge from Asia.
Verta raises funding to scale biomass production and regional footprint
Verta Bioenergy, a Singapore-headquartered climate tech startup, has secured SGD 1.1 million in seed funding, according to e27. The investors include Engine Factory, Wright Partners, AlphaGen VC, Auravia Capital, and Jun Umali of the Manila Angel Investors Network.
The funds will support the launch of the company’s first commercial-scale manufacturing plant, which will produce 12,000 tons of biomass pellets annually. Co-created with Engine Factory, Wright Partners, and Ming Labs, Verta was incubated under a venture program backed by Singapore’s Economic Development Board. The company converts agricultural waste into high-quality biomass pellets that serve as drop-in replacements for industrial coal.
Operating in the Philippines with plans to expand across Southeast Asia, Verta aims to achieve positive cash flow within a year.
Xendit acquires Payex to strengthen operations in Malaysia
Xendit, a payments infrastructure company, has reinforced its commitment to Malaysia’s digital economy through the acquisition and integration of Payex, a Bank Negara Malaysia-licensed payment gateway. The move follows two years of localized development since Xendit entered the Malaysian market in 2023.
“Malaysian businesses possess the innovation and drive to become regional champions, but complex, fragmented payment systems have often been a barrier,” said Jayson Poon, Malaysia country manager for Xendit and former Bank Negara Malaysia executive. “Xendit’s role is to dismantle these barriers.”
HKUST, HKIC, and Gobi Partners launch fund to commercialize university research
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC), and Gobi Partners have launched the Gobi-Redbird Innovation Fund (Gobi-RIF) to advance university-origin technologies into global markets.
As the second venture fund under the RIF framework, Gobi-RIF targets early-stage ventures in biotechnology, advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, robotics, and fintech. The fund is managed by Gobi Partners.
Its initial pipeline includes Lymow, Atom Semiconductor, and Stellerus Technology, all HKUST spinouts.
Rivrs expands to Asia with new fund and regional hubs
Rivrs, a France-based company specializing in user-generated content games, has announced its expansion into Asia with the launch of a regional arm backed by a USD 1 million fund for creators in the Roblox ecosystem.
The fund will support regional studios and creators in Southeast Asia, fostering innovation on Roblox and promoting collaboration across markets such as Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand. The company has also opened a development studio in Da Nang, Vietnam, and established a regional publishing headquarters in Hong Kong to manage partnerships, market analysis, and community engagement.
Recent deals completed in China:
- Yanhe Solar, a perovskite solar cell manufacturer, has raised over RMB 100 million (USD 14 million) in a Series A round led by Orient Jiafu Asset Management, with participation from Empyrean Venture, Xingxiang Investment Holding Group, CASVC, and Morning Spring Venture. Existing investor Caixin Capital Investment also joined the round, while Lingxiao Capital and Six Sigma Capital served as financial advisors. The proceeds will be used to build mass production lines for perovskite solar cells and expand the company’s global market presence. —36Kr
- Xense Robotics, a tactile sensing technology company, has completed a pre-Series A round worth a nine-figure RMB sum. The round was led by Fortera Capital, with participation from Li Auto, BeFor Capital, and Capital for Science & Industry, alongside existing backers GL Ventures, Oriza Seed, and Gobi China. The funds will go toward R&D, product iteration, team expansion, and market development. —36Kr
- Zhexin Siwei, a voice technology developer, has secured an undisclosed investment from Shenzhen-based investor Tenclass. The deal establishes a partnership between the two firms, integrating software and hardware capabilities across the AI-driven voice technology value chain. —36Kr
- Blue Sky Aviation Technology, a Jinan-registered manufacturer of eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft, has raised an eight-figure RMB sum in a third extension round of angel funding. The round was led by Huacang Capital, with continued support from existing investor Monad Ventures. Surgepine Capital acted as the financial advisor. The funding will accelerate development and capacity building in preparation for mass production of its hybrid tiltrotor cargo models. —36Kr
- DesignOrder, a generative design software provider for industrial applications, has secured an eight-figure RMB sum in a pre-Series B round from Yonghua Capital and GF Xinde Investment, with StarOcean Capital serving as the financial advisor. The funds will be used for product R&D and market expansion, including international outreach. —36Kr
- Synapath AI, an embodied AI data platform, has raised an eight-figure RMB sum in an angel round co-led by Oriental Fortune Capital and JG Investment. The capital will support ongoing training and scaling of its multimodal embodied data pipelines. —36Kr
- Anavi, a power systems developer, has secured several million RMB in an angel round solely backed by Clearwater Bay II Fund. The company will use the funds to refine its functional prototype and prepare for subsequent fundraising. —36Kr
- RobotGym, a Shenzhen-based eldercare robotics company, has completed a second extension round worth tens of millions of RMB in angel funding from Leaguer Financial, with Yuanhe serving as the financial advisor. The funds will be directed toward technology iteration, product engineering, pilot deployments in elderly care scenarios, and early market expansion. —36Kr
Valtor, Supabase, Yup, and more made recent headlines:
- Valtor Solutions, a construction sourcing and procurement firm based in the Philippines, raised USD 700,000 in a pre-seed round led by climate tech venture builder Wavemaker Impact.
- Supabase, an open-source backend-as-a-service provider, raised USD 120 million in a Series E round co-led by Accel and Peak XV. The round also saw participation from Figma and existing investors Y Combinator, Coatue, Felicis, Craft, and Square Peg.
- Yup, a digital bank based in Southeast Asia, secured USD 32 million in its Series C1 equity round from US-based investors including Moore Strategic Ventures, Spice Expeditions, and Platanus, alongside existing shareholders.
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